Electric heater.



UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

ROBERT LUNDELL, on NEW YORK, N. Y., AssteNoR To THE BAY STATE ELEC- TRio HEAT AND LIGHT COMPANY, or JERSEY CITY, NEW JERsEY.

ELECTRIC HEATER.

SDEGIFICATIOLl' forming part of Letters Patent No. 640,143, dated December 26, 1899.

Application filed May 24, 1898. Serial No. 681,595. (No model.)

To aZZ whom. it may concern.-

- Be it known that I, ROBERT LUNDELL, of

New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Heaters,

of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of electric heating apparatus disclosed and broadly claimed in United States Letters Patent issued to The Dewey Corporation as assignor of Mark WV. Dewey, No. 449,404, dated March 31, 1891; and my invention consists in certain improvements thereon, as hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the I 5 claims.

The object of my invention is to rapidly radiate or diffuse the heat from the heatdeveh oping electric conductors or resistances by means of an air-agitating body, such as a fan, so that the heat will be evenly diffused throughout the apartment or room in which the apparatus is located.

In the ordinary stationary electric heaters which are used in apartments and cars for 2 5 heating purposes the heat is imperfectly diffused by the ordinary circulation of the heated air rising from the heated electrical resistances or conductors. To obviate this imperfect difiusion and to render the atmosphere 0 more even, I show a fan in connection with the electric heat-developing surfaces, whereby through the agitation of the air the heat is prevented from directly rising and is diffused evenly throughout the apartment, whereas in 5 the present form of electric heaters a great amount of heat is stored and wasted at the ceiling.

In carrying out my invention I employ the usual ventilating-fan and electric motor and 4.0 locate the heat-developing electric resistances or conductors upon a guard directly in front of the fan. By this arrangement, the electric current being turned on, the fan revolves, throwing the air in the usual manner, and the electric heating resistances or conductors are heated by said current, and the heat is removed or displaced from said conductors or resistances rapidly by the fan, as the air passes over said resistances or conductors and is diffused in a horizontal direction.

In the accompanying drawings, which illus trate a construction embodying my invention, Figure 1 is a side view of a fan and a partial sectional view of the heater mounted on the guard of the fan. Fig. 2 is a view looking from the rear of the motor and showing the insulated porcelain supporting-blocks of the heater and which support the conductors or resistances in their proper positions. Fig. 3 is a detail perspective view of two of the blocks and the retaining-rods.

Like letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the several views.

A represents the usual electric motor, supported on the base A and having the usual 6 shaft B and suitable oil-cups O for lubricating the shaft 13. Mounted on said shaft 13, at its front end, is a fan I), having four blades D. Located around said fan is a guard E, held in place by the braces E, secured to the guard at E and to the motor at E 011 the front side of the guard E there is located the electric heater F, which is constructed with an outer metallic ring F and an inner metallic ring F connected radially by the outer and inner retaining-rods F F. Located between said rods and held in place by them are a series of porcelain insulating-blocks G, provided at their outer sides with the recess G and at their opposite ends with the grooves G G in which grooves G G are respectively located the retaining-rods F F and by means of this construction said insulated blocks are held rigidly in position between the outer and inner rods F F. The clamps F are secured at one end to the front of the guard and at the opposite end to the outer metallic ring F, and by means of said clamps the electric heater F is held firmly in its position with relation to the fan-guard.

The electrical conductor or resistance H, composed of suitable resistance-wire and by which the heat is developed by its resistance to the passage of the electric current, is arranged in a convolute and held in position 5 by the grooves G in the insulating-blocks G. By this arrangement an open screen is formed in front of the fan, which screen heats the air from the fan and allows, by its construction, the free passage of the same. The air too from the fan takes up the heat from the conductor or resistance H and removes or displaces the same in a horizontal direction instead of allowing it to rise directly to the ceiling. By this diffusion of the air by the fan the temperature of the room is rendered more eqnable than by the ordinary methods of heating. The electric current passes in through the wire J to the binding-post J, where the current is divided, and part of said current passes to the motor A in the usual manner through the wire J and the other part of the current passes through the wire J 3 to the binding-post J secured to the outer metallic ring F, insulated therefrom. The current then passes by the wire K tothe binding-post K, then to the metallic strip K through the washer K to the switch-arm Kflto the switchcontact K, through the metallic strip K and to the screw K in the inner metallic ring F insulated therefrom. From said screw the current passes at 1-1 to the conductor or resistance H at its inner end. The current passes through all the convolutions of the conductor or resistance H, which is secured at its outer end H to the binding-post H secured in the outer metallic ring F and insulated therefrom. The current passes through said binding-post to the wire 11, to the binding-post I1 and out through the wire H, which is also the eXit of the part of the current coming from the motor through the wire II".

The switch-arm K is mounted on the shaft L, which is operated by the button L.

This apparatus is designed to be used part of the time as an ordinary summer or cooling fan. When it is desired to use it as a heater, the current is turned into the conductor or resistance H by manipulating the button L to bring the switch-arm K over the contactpoint K which position is shown in the drawings, and in which position the current passes through the conductor H, and the fan becomes a heater by reason of the air from the fan taking up the heat developed in the conductor or resistance H by the passage of the electric current. Among the various advantages of this method of heating may be mentioned the fact that the life of the heating resistances or conductors is greatly prolonged by the rapidremoval or displacement of the heated air from the surfaces of the conductors or resistances, because said conductors or resistances are kept at a low temperature, although they are giving off a great amount of heat to the rapidly-moving air.

In the drawings but one convolution of the resistance-wire II is shown; but in actual practice I have found it advisable to use more than one convolution for the purpose of increasing the resistance and the heating surface.

I do not limit myself to the arrangement and construction shown, as the same may be varied without departing from the spirit of my invention.

Having thus ascertained the nature of my invention and set forth a construction enibodying the same, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an electric heater located in front of said fan and consisting of one or more heat-developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through which the air from said fan passes, insulating-blocks having grooves in which the conductors or resistances are located and supported, an inner and an outer ring between which said insulating-blocks are located and rods located in grooves in the ends of said insulating-blocks and connected to said rings for holding said blocks in position.

2. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an electric heater located in front of said fan and consisting of one or more heat-developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through which the air from said fan passes, insulating-blocks for supporting the electrical conductors or resistances, an inner and an outer ring between which said insulating-blocks are located, and rods located on the ends of said blocks and connected to said rings for holding said blocks in position In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an electric heater consisting of one or more heat-developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through which the air to be heated passes, insulating-blocks for supporting the electrical conductors or resist-.

ances, an inner and an outer ring between which said insulating-blocks are located, and rods located on the ends of said blocks and connected to said rings for holding said blocks in position.

4. In an electric heating apparatus, a fan, a motor for operating said fan, an electric heater mounted upon the same support as the fan and consisting of one or more heat-developing electrical conductors or resistances forming an open screen through which the air to be heated passes, insulating-blocks for supporting the electrical conductors or resistances, an inner and an outer ring between which said insulating-blocks are located, and rods located on the ends of said blocks and connected to said rings for holding said rings in position.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of:

two subscribing witnesses, this 20th day of,

May, A. D. 1898.

ROBERT LUNDELL.

\Vi tnesses:

D. O. DURLAND, Gnoneu S. Wnsron, 2d.

ICC

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